Serendipity can basically be defined as a delightful outcome from an accidental act or experiment. Many inventions that we take for granted now exist today due to serendipity. An example of one such invention is Play-Doh. Play-Doh is the modeling clay commonly used by toddlers which has sold more than 700 million pounds to consumers since its creation in 1955. This commonly used clay was accidentally created by Joseph and Noah McVicker in their pursuit to create wallpaper cleaner. Luck has always been a major component behind the accidental outcomes of serendipity. If inventors weren’t trying to make a substance but discovered it accidentally, such as the creators of Play-Doh, then they truly were lucky.
However, to just discover the invention is not the reason so many inventions have been successful after serendipity. It is the intelligence of human beings to utilize and embrace their pleasant surprises that allows their inventions to reach a truly successful status. Without the ingenuity of these inventors to market and truly understand their inventions, it might as well have been like the invention never existed in the first place. Serendipity itself has had broad and various effects on society all around the world as we know it. For example, scientists have often come across answers to questions they weren’t looking to answer by pure accident. They come across these things and don’t ignore it, but utilize it in their studies. Another example on the effects of serendipity on society is sports. One athlete in particular, Ronaldo, was found accidentally by recruiters of the Portuguese soccer club Sporting CP when they were scouting out another player on his team. These accidental talent recruits have proved to be phenomenal in diversifying and supplementing the talent on sports teams everywhere. These are some examples of how serendipity has affected different cultural aspects of our society.
I liked the variety of examples shown in your post. I never knew Play-Doh was created unintentionally. I agree that intelligence is part of serendipity of these great discoveries, but I also think that there are many serendipitous discoveries that did not include a previous skill set. These discoveries might not be as great as discoveries such as Ronaldo and Play-Doh, but are serendipitous findings.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the statement "just to discover the invention is not the reason so many inventions have been successful after serendipity." I believe that serendipity (in a lab setting) is something that scientists stumble upon, not something that happens and then is proven correct. Serendipity can help move scientists in a certain direction and ignite their research in an unexpected direction; however, in order for a discovery to become an actual invention, there needs to be a brain behind it. There needs to be a scientist behind the discovery to analyze the findings and make a conclusion with proof to back it up. Only then can something be credited as a true discovers. Serendipity cannot act alone to create an invention.
ReplyDelete-Rachel Henry J5
I though know some anthletes who were found accidentally, I never know Ronaldo was one of them. It is a good example, and I learn from it. Also, I like how you started the second paragraph. You made a good argument, "It is the intelligence of human beings to utilize and embrace their pleasant surprises that allows their inventions to reach a truly successful status." You not only talked about serendipity, but you also discussed the success behind serendipity. All in all, it is a thorough and didactic post.
ReplyDelete-Albert Tseng J5
Btw my name Sanat Moningi and I'm G5.
ReplyDelete